Star Fox Switch 2 demo is live today — try the Meteo mission for free

Nintendo dropped a free Star Fox demo on the Switch 2 eShop today, announced during the Nintendo Direct livestream. It's your first chance to go hands-on with the Star Fox 64 remake before it launches.

The demo includes the game's tutorial and Meteo, one of the early missions. The full release, confirmed for June 25 exclusively on Switch 2, features updated graphics, new cutscenes that expand the original story, and an online multiplayer battle mode. Today's Direct also showed footage from Solar and Zoness missions in the full game.

IGN's Logan Plant, who went hands-on ahead of today's announcement, called it far more than a cosmetic refresh: "This new take on the classic Star Fox 64 is not just a simple fresh coat of paint like the 3DS version. Instead, it's shaping up to be a significantly expanded and surprisingly cinematic retelling of the Lylat Wars, thanks to an overhauled script that's brought to life by some of the strongest voice acting and cutscene direction I've ever seen in a Nintendo game."

The demo also gives players a look at the new character redesigns — a topic that's already stirred some debate, with Star Fox creator Takaya Imamura going on record saying he prefers Fox's look in The Super Mario Galaxy Movie over this remake.